Toms on the Backbeat

DrummerCA35

Senior Member
Who was the "first" to come up with hitting a rack/floor tom on the backbeat either with the snare or by itself?

Examples that come to mind are the following, but there are naturally countless songs that do this.

* songs by the Spinners "Could it be I'm Falling in Love", "I'll be there", etc.

* Eagles' songs like "One of these nights", etc.

* REM's "Band and Blame." Rack tom instead of snare during verses.

The first I recall hearing this was in disco/R&B songs of the 70's, but I'm wondering if anyone knows who came up with this idea, where it started. Or did it happen with a bunch of people at the same time?
 
That's as old as dirt.

I think it was a guy named Eddie that did it first.

Sorry, I really don't know. But I bet you can find examples of it that go clear back to the beginnings of backbeat.
 
Drummer Al Jackson, with Booker T I think was probably the first on record with it. He did it a lot playing for the Rev. Al Green.
 
Drummer Al Jackson, with Booker T I think was probably the first on record with it. He did it a lot playing for the Rev. Al Green.

Yes, I was kinda thinking that might be it...those Al Green songs like "let's stay together" and so on. That was around 1973 maybe? I can't recall any recordings earlier than this that have this tom on the backbeat thing...
 
Here's a question: What do you call it?

There has to be a name for that beat.

Another example is La Bamba, as done by Los Lobos.
 
I've tried doing this, when I've played "I'll be there" by the Spinners or "Don't Stop Believin'. It sounds okay, but when hitting a rack/floor tom instead of a snare, I bet it sounds a heck of a lot better hitting a mic'd tom going through a PA.
 
I think it was a guy named Eddie that did it first.

Same guy that built the pyramids, eh?

Steven-Wright.jpg
 
Same guy that built the pyramids, eh?

Steven-Wright.jpg

Busted. That is a Steven Wright joke that I stole. It is the same guy who built the pyramids. Eddie. The guy was a regular Forrest Gump.

I can't believe you knew that obscure reference.
 
I mean, as far as really old history, there were toms before there were snare drums. Assuming some caveman was able to play by happenstance in 4 and accented the right places...
 
It was me.

I was the first one to use toms for the back beat.

It was 1956. I was 6 years old and I was playing "Hound Dog" by Elvis Presley.
I played it that way because I did not know any better.
A few weeks later my Dad corrected me and that was the last time I played it that way.


.
 
I mean, as far as really old history, there were toms before there were snare drums. Assuming some caveman was able to play by happenstance in 4 and accented the right places...

Yup. A snare is a tom with a snare (as in trap, like animal trap for snaring rabbits) laid on top... or the bottom if you are the Swiss Army.

The backbeat is fundamental, not an innovation. You might as well ask who first played the pulse on the tom. It is a matter of physics! (See my book in the sig!) You cant avoid the backbeat in any music that has a groove... the stronger the backbeats are felt, the stronger the groove! ... It's St Patrick's Day, so here's an Irish example... Check out the backbeats with the brush in the left hand at the beginning here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QjpcTiL6vnQ
 
Busted. That is a Steven Wright joke that I stole. It is the same guy who built the pyramids. Eddie. The guy was a regular Forrest Gump.

I can't believe you knew that obscure reference.

Stole? I looked at it as a 'tribute'. (Better not say anymore about that or this could turn into another 'Blurred Lines' thread...)

But I've long been a fan of Steven Wright, and appreciate your referencing him.
 
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